Comments on My Open Wallet: September '09 Monthly Recap

Awesome numbers! I just reached my first $100,000...

2009-10-25T08:26:21.435-04:00

Awesome numbers! I just reached my first $100,000 mark. Look forward to seeing those numbers in my savings.

GI Jane

Appraisals are helpful, but I don't get too excite...

2009-10-22T23:44:45.092-04:00

Appraisals are helpful, but I don't get too excited. I had to get one for a refi in March (granted, NY real estate is iffy right now, and opinions range from having hit bottom to still a ways down to go), and it seemed high. 20K more than what the same apartment a floor above me is asking (no sale yet) and 70K more than what one below me sold for.

If you want to put your mind at ease about your co...

2009-10-21T12:37:21.969-04:00

If you want to put your mind at ease about your condo's value, you could just order an appraisal. I know, it is horrible to do this for no real purpose, but it may be good to do once every few years especially if you enjoy having accurate numbers.

Costs about $350-$400 usually in NYC area. I live in nyc and did this recently, and while the numbers were down a little, it wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. 4-5% decrease I think.

Nice cash position, by the way, Madame X!

2009-10-16T16:07:42.157-04:00

Nice cash position, by the way, Madame X!

@ bugbear, my total savings for the month includes...

2009-10-13T11:15:59.906-04:00

@ bugbear, my total savings for the month includes over $1400 that went into my 401k.

@my frugal miser, I do eat dinners out about once a week and occasionally order take out food. I also buy coffee and lunch most days. search "food" in the archives, as I've written a lot about my spending in this area!

BTW, how does your retirement savings fit into thi...

2009-10-10T04:37:51.211-04:00

BTW, how does your retirement savings fit into this?( you didn't include retirement savings as an expense this month, yet you have in excess of $226,000 listed as retirement funds).

Oh to earn a $96,000 yearly salary... let's see, ...

2009-10-10T04:34:14.198-04:00

Oh to earn a $96,000 yearly salary...

let's see, at $36,000 in savings per year, you will have about 800,000 by the time you are 50 and 1.2 million by 60, about 800K of which will be cash. Leaving investment earnings that surpass inflation aside. then you could move to a less expensive place and live a queenly life off of a 3% withdrawal of your total cash principal, or $24,000 per year. Maybe it doesn't sound like much but it's quite a nice sum, particularly if you own your home free and clear.

Digging the blog! Thanks for posting your numbers...

2009-10-08T15:03:26.050-04:00

Digging the blog! Thanks for posting your numbers. Its nice to see how I stack up!

$566 on dining? Wow... I know it costs more in Ne...

2009-10-07T22:08:10.033-04:00

$566 on dining? Wow... I know it costs more in New York, but this seems really high. How much eating out do you do versus eating at home? Just curious.

The key question is how realistic is the valuation...

2009-10-06T20:03:54.208-04:00

The key question is how realistic is the valuation of your home equity as it represents over 20% of your net worth.

The other issue in calculating a "real net worth" is taxes. With 59% of your net worth subject to future taxes, taxes will have a not insignificant impact on your true net worth.

You know what they, only two things you can count on.... death and taxes.

Still, you're moving in the right direction!

Saving 30% of your gross income is pretty cool. Yo...

2009-10-06T17:33:50.479-04:00

Saving 30% of your gross income is pretty cool. Your planning and savings are awesome, that too at recession time.

I think you have done a terrific job. You inspire ...

2009-10-06T16:04:12.458-04:00

I think you have done a terrific job. You inspire me to get control of my finances.

Congrats! I worked out our numbers and we only ...

2009-10-06T15:04:45.861-04:00

Congrats!

I worked out our numbers and we only seem to be saving 15-20% of our gross income every month. That will go up in about a year when my husband graduates from his Master's program (we made just enough that we qualified for no assistance). Then I want to open a Roth IRA for my hubby to go along with his pension.

I'd be pretty happy with 2 maxed-out Roth IRA's, a 401k at max matching, and his pension. :) I might even stop bugging him so much about miscellaneous expenses...well, I'll try.

Yeah, I was wondering about that too. The irony f...

2009-10-06T14:50:04.461-04:00

Yeah, I was wondering about that too. The irony for me is that I've been putting off doing Sept numbers and now I can't :(

You are so right! There is nothing quite like the...

2009-10-06T13:57:43.914-04:00

You are so right! There is nothing quite like the warm fuzzy feeling you get from having money in the bank, solid equity in your home, and investments that are growing. You know that no matter what life throws at you, you'll come out on top. That feeling "colors" your entire perspective on life and puts a spring in your step!